


I swim for myself (and for you)

by Hinalilly



Category: Free!
Genre: Birthday Presents, Fluff and Feels, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-02-03
Updated: 2015-02-03
Packaged: 2018-03-10 07:05:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,389
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3281306
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hinalilly/pseuds/Hinalilly
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Haru sends Rin a box for his 18th birthday.</p>
            </blockquote>





	I swim for myself (and for you)

**Author's Note:**

> I gotta post this quickly to make the deadline so actual comments/typo fixes will come later.
> 
> Happy Birthday, Rin! Thanks for ruining my life!

"Thanks for coming all this way," was what Kou said, smiling that part thankful, part embarrassed, and part mischievous little smile that Haru had gotten used to these past couple of years during his time in the swim club. He stood a little awkwardly a few steps behind her, looking to the side and trying to keep his distance, to keep from intruding.

There was nothing to be thankful for, anyway. It was pretty much a coincidence (that, and Haru's poor timing) that they'd both ended up in the same place at the same time. Haru was pretty sure that, had he found himself alone, he would've changed his mind halfway through, turning around while echoing a resolute 'this is stupid' in his head as he walked away. But now that the two of them were there together, all he could do was stay silent and try not to disturb Kou as she engaged in her silent conversation with her father.

Haru had heard from Kou once in passing that Rin liked coming to this place before his important races. Maybe it was just to talk with his father, perhaps for good luck or perhaps to remind himself of what he was swimming for. Haru had never asked, so he didn't know for sure. What he did know was that now Rin was in Australia, swimming in order to chase his _own_ dream, and while he wasn't doing it out of duty towards his father anymore, Haru still thought Rin would've liked to pay him a visit before his first big competition.

Sometime earlier that week, while Haru and Makoto were scheduling their trips to Iwatobi for their get-together with the rest of the group ("let's skype with Rin-chan and wish him good luck!" had been Nagisa’s brilliant suggestion), it had somehow crossed his mind that it would be a good idea to pay his respects in Rin's place as well.

It was _very_ stupid, because Haru didn't know Rin's father and he didn't really know what to say to him, either, but if his words might help Rin feel at ease or give him strength in some way, then he guessed he could deal with the awkwardness for as long as it lasted.

He should've known that Kou would have a similar idea, really. It was his own fault for not considering that possibility in the first place.

"Onii-chan always said that he'd bring his first medal here," Kou spoke up suddenly, startling Haru out of his train of thought, and getting him to place his gaze on her again. "He kept saying that he'd win it for Dad."

Haru wasn't sure if it was his place to say anything yet (or at all, even), so he just stood there, staring at Kou's back as she bowed her head again, going back to her prayers.

Rin's practice should end in a few more hours. The plan was to gather at the Matsuoka household and try to catch him online before he left for his evening run.

Haru just stood there, staring at the stone grave from behind Kou, and busied himself picturing the glimmer of Olympic gold in the afternoon sun.

 

* * *

 

Rin had received his fair share of weird presents in these past few years. Granted, most of them were either personally bought by or orchestrated by Nagisa, and thanks to spending a large part of his childhood either a) focused on swimming or b) focused on swimming _abroad_ , Rin hadn't celebrated his birthday enough times to tip the scale towards the regular, run-of-the-mill presents’ side, either. It was, in a way, partly his own fault, too, for surrounding himself with such a huge group of equally huge weirdoes—naturally, he’d be lucky if he got something with a practical use from them. Then again, it's not like Rin asked then to buy him anything, anyway. He was content enough with being congratulated for his birthday—and considering the presence of _certain people_ in his closest circle, he could already consider himself lucky that they bothered to remember his birthday at all.

Yes, as usual, and fittingly so for the fresh start of his 18th year of life, Matsuoka Rin was silently grumbling about Nanase Haruka again. Firstly, because Haru had probably bothered to get him a present only because the others had, too, instead of just shoving one of those ridiculous Iwatobi-chan straps his way, of which Rin already had more than a few (all similar but different, just like Haru's swimsuits) tucked amongst his luggage. Secondly, because Haru hadn’t even bothered to smile when he’d said 'happy birthday' to him; he’d just sounded annoyed and like he’d been forced to say it against his will. And thirdly, because among all the other presents that his friends had sent him over to Australia ('nothing to swim with' had probably been the silent directive for this year, he guessed, from the looks of all the random items he'd received, which ranged from handmade bookmarks to bug-catching items to a small collection of Love Live! CDs—for Rin to update his taste in music in time for their next karaoke visit, Nagisa had explained in the accompanying letter) Haru's present for his 18th birthday consisted of a box.

But oh no, it wasn't just any box, no.

It was an _empty_ one.

A black, palm-sized, square-shaped, _empty_ box.

Rin didn't really care much about birthdays, and he had already braced himself for a puzzling gift on Haru's part, but Nanase Haruka had sent him an empty box full of _nothing_ for his 18th birthday, and it was just as ridiculous as it was mildly frustrating, to say the least.

If there was a joke in there somewhere, Rin’s confused frown was proof that it hadn’t been effective at all.

The thank you messages for everyone else would wait, Rin had decided, at least until he managed to extract a proper explanation from Haru himself.

 

"Haru, what the hell," was the first thing Rin said when the video call finally connected, staring face to screen with a Haru two hours apart in time from him. All he got for his eloquent and friendly greeting was a short blink.

"Good evening, Rin," was Haru's blank response, and Rin wasn't sure if he was either purposefully mocking him or if he seriously didn’t know what Rin was talking about.

Gesturing a small wave in return, Rin simply cut to the chase, picking up the box in one hand, fingers stretched to the max, and held it in front of the web cam so Haru could see it.

"What is this supposed to be?" He asked, his brow scrunched in honest confusion and frustration over hours of silent mulling (with no decisive conclusions) on the topic of 'what the hell did Haru mean with this sorry excuse for a gift he sent me for my birthday.'

It had to mean something. That was the kind of person Haru was.

"It's a box," Haru replied in 0.02 seconds, and Rin was really, _really_ glad that there was an entire ocean between them at the moment.

"Wow, thanks Haru, I had no idea," Rin grumbled, taking the box in both hands and opening it. "What I meant is," he frowned, pointing it towards the web cam again, showing its lack of contents, and hoping that he didn't sound as stupid as he thought he did, "what does this mean?"

Haru stared at him (or at the box, maybe) for a whole 3 seconds before replying in his usual, no-nonsense, blunt way.

"It' a box," he said again, plainly and clearly, and Rin's eyes widened a fraction. "It’s empty."

Rin was _this_ close to single-handedly pulling his own hair out.

"What I'm asking is _why_ is it empty!!" he groaned, immediately shaking his head and letting his frustrations out in a long, loud sigh afterwards. If they’d been together, he could’ve at least taken immediate revenge for the mockery; challenge Haru to a race (and thoroughly wipe the floor with him—he had to stop himself from snorting at the cleaning products Sousuke had sent him as a present for that _very_ purpose), or buy him something completely useless in return as ‘thanks’ for his gift. But Rin was tired and miles away from Haru, so he went with the shortcut instead. "Look, if this is a joke, I didn't get it, okay? Just tell me."

Neither Rin’s outburst nor his honest request for an explanation had made a single hair on Haru’s head move, and for a moment Rin thought he was really, actually messing with him—however, all of a sudden, Haru lowered his gaze for the briefest of seconds, causing Rin’s eyes to widen as he instinctively held his breath.

Haru spoke quietly, looking back up to Rin again. "You're supposed to put something in it."

If this had been regular, deadpan Haru, then Rin would’ve definitely snapped again. But the slight moment of… hesitation? Deliberation, maybe? Whatever it had been, that short pause made it clear that Haru wasn’t messing with him after all.

" _Oh?_ " Rin tilted his head a little, eyebrows raised slightly, as the gears started turning in his head again. It really _was_ just a box. It was a bit lacking in the decoration department, though (plain, black, not very flashy), so Rin didn’t think Haru would have sent it for him to liven up his place a little. Still, he'd definitely sent it with a particular use in mind, and that _something_ was what Rin had to guess now. Maybe postcards? Letters? Maybe Haru thought Rin could store his ‘commemorative’ Iwatobi-chan straps in it for safekeeping? That would be a nice way to show his appreciation for them _and_ to avoid their soulless stare whenever he had to rummage through his bags, all at the same time. Still, knowing Haru (and considering he’d spent the larger part of his day wondering what the hell his gift meant, and none of his suspicions had been correct), Rin guessed he could end up spending the rest of his waking life trying to figure it out on his own. So, with a little smirk that was meant to look as confident as possible, in order to hide how absolutely clueless he was about the whole thing, he outright asked. "And what exactly _is_ that something, hm?"

Again, Haru did that thing where he averted his gaze briefly before looking back up.

There was a short pause before he spoke, and his tone was so firm and resolute that Rin could swear he was having flashbacks of cherry blossoms blooming in the air.

"My first medal."

Rin choked.

He felt as if he’d accidentally swallowed one of the goddamn petals, and his smirk had been slapped off his face in a single gust of wind.

"Kou said you're going to give yours to your father," Haru continued, and Rin's posture broke again, straightening up instantly with wide eyes and slightly red cheeks.

"Wha—why would she—"

"That means you won’t have it anymore. So I thought I'd give you mine."

Rin's mouth hung open mid-sentence, both the box and his hands lying limp on his lap. But Haru was too busy staring and picking crumbs off the 4th row of keys on his keyboard to notice, so he continued talking without making any comments.

"I don't have any yet. That's why it's empty."

Rin gulped loudly enough that Haru looked up again, with that uncomfortable look in his eyes that he seemed to wear whenever he was wondering if he’d said too much or if it had come out right.

Rin had no idea which one it was (it was probably both at once), but he _did_ know that having this conversation over voice call had been a terrible, terrible idea.

He had about half a second to react, grabbing the box again and pushing it against the web cam just in time so Haru wouldn’t be able to see him tearing up like the idiot he was. It was obviously a pointless effort, though, because the inevitable, soft "Don’t cry, Rin" came out through the speakers shortly after Rin’s side had been successfully blacked out.

"Idiot," Rin began, trying his hardest to wipe his eyes with his sleeves before the damage became too obvious, "you can’t just give me something like that for my birthday!"

"It’s fine," Haru cut him off instantly, and Rin sniffled hard enough so that it could safely pass as a snort.

"But then you won’t have it anymore either!" Rin tried to protest, but it was difficult to frown at Haru when he could see him craning his neck to try and somehow look past the black screen. It was a miracle Haru had learned how to use Skype in the first place, and Rin almost laughed.

There was another pause, and Haru breathed in deep, as if he were deliberately buying time to edit his reply before speaking.

"We can share," Haru said confidently, and Rin thought he could see a hint of a smirk on his face. "You just have to match my time."

Rin blamed his inability to immediately counter the jab on the fact that he had been expecting something heartfelt, something sweet—it was ultimately all the stupid box’s fault, which he pulled away from the camera to smirk at Haru on the other side.

"Don’t you mean _you_ have to match _my_ time?" he snorted, but Haru stood his ground.

"No. I said _you_ have to match _mine_."

Rin’s cheeks were still a little red, and he would’ve bet big bucks that Haru was still a little embarrassed himself and trying to hide it (just as much as him), but among the boasting and the challenges and the smiles, Rin could definitely see it clearly now.

It wasn’t about anyone giving anything up for the other. Neither of them would end up losing anything—that medal would still be Haru’s, but it would also be Rin’s.

It was just the first one, and also not just the first one—it would be a constant reminder that they were going to win _so_ many medals together, that Rin was definitely going to need it so as not to lose count.

**Author's Note:**

> Rin totally isn't a fan of Love Live!
> 
> Of course not.


End file.
